Aragon
United States v. Aragon
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM *
DefendanN-Appellant Luis Andres Ara-gon-Robles appeals from his conviction for illegal re-entry into the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326 (b)(2). Aragon contends that the district court erred when it denied his motion to suppress evidence of his identity because the police were motivated by his race when they seized and detained him.
Aragon’s contention that the police seized and detained him because he is Hispanic is based, at least in part, on testimony that the police were “interested in these people because they were Hispanic,” and that they asked a witness whether he “believed [Aragon-Robles and his companions] were drug-dealers or gang-bangers.” Aragon argues that the information *591 the police relied on to detain him — that a collision occurred in a parking lot, the individuals involved sought cash for the damage to the vehicle, may have been smoking marijuana, were acting “suspiciously,” and were leaving town for Los Angeles in a few days — was insufficient to link Aragon and his companions to an ongoing federal investigation of Hispanic males trafficking methamphetamine from Washington to Great Falls, Montana.